BanglaCricket Article

With the much awaited Test series between Bangladesh-England ending disappointingly for Bangladesh, it is time to evaluate the individual performances. Coming back from a series victory, Bangladesh crashed down to earth with some less than stellar performances. On a scale of 1 through10, here is how I would rate the individual performances. They are, of course, subjective and were done based on three criteria: what we expected of them, how they actually performed, and their Test temperament. Feel free to debate my evaluations in the forums.

With the much awaited Test series between Bangladesh-England ending
disappointingly for Bangladesh, it is time to evaluate the individual performances. Coming back
from a series victory, Bangladesh crashed down to earth with some less than
stellar performances. On a scale of 1 through10, here is how I would rate the
individual performances. They are, of course, subjective and were done based on
three criteria: what we expected of them, how they actually performed, and their
Test temperament. Feel free to debate my evaluations in the forums.

Habibul Bashar - 5

Though the captain redeemed himself in the last innings at
Durham, it mattered little at that point. His dismissals to careless pull shots
in both innings at Lord?s after facing only two balls will haunt him forever.
His leadership was also not very inspiring. Periodically said that he was
nervous at the crease - not the most ideal thing for a captain to say.

+Khaled Mashud - 8

One of the bright spots of the tour. He was the victim of a
wrong decision in the 1st innings of the first Test. But he has been superb in
gritting it out and put a premium to his wicket in all the innings. His
glovework was, as usual, superb.

+Mushfiqur Rahim 7

Showed tremendous maturity in this series for his age. His
nerves were strong and he showed tremendous potential for the future. He got out
to two superb deliveries in both the innings of the first Test. He was injured
and unavailable for the 2nd Test.

Mohammad Ashraful - 4

One of the most dismal failures of this tour. Never
looked confident during his stays at the wicket and it appeared that he was
trying to hit his way through bad form. His dismissal in the 2nd innings of the
2nd Test, caused by a dreadful lofted shot 4 balls before the tea, highlighted
his immaturity and unpredictability. Until he learns to put a price tag to his
wicket, he should not play for Bangladesh.

Played superbly in all the innings and was the foundation for
each innings. The most important thing was he knew his limitations and played
within it which most other players did not do. This trip will be the highlight
of his career.

Rajin Saleh - 5

Looked out of sorts in the only Test he played. Although he
tried to grind it out, he got out just when he got set.

Nafis Iqbal - 5

Even though his wicket in the last innings was caused by an
unfortunate decision, he showed lack of application in this tour. He did not do
justice to his abilities and nor did he appear to learn from his mistakes.

Aftab Ahmed - 6

Top scorer in an individual innings this series. He played
some superb shots in that innings including a massive six off Flintoff. He was
disappointing with his bowling and looked out of sorts in the first three
innings. He needs to develop a temperament for Tests. He still is better suited
for One Day cricket.

Mohammad Rafique - 4

This is a tour that he will want to forget. Even the 2nd-choice
English spinner was turning the ball more than him. He was expensive and
ineffective barring a few spells.

Mashrafe Mortaza - 7

Bowled his heart out but his lack of pace was exposed.
Did not find any able partner in bowling. Also, his much talked about
improvement in batting skill was embarrassingly not evident.

Tapash Baisya - 5

Did not get to do much in the only Test he played. He could
not utilize the English conditions at all and was partially hampered by injury.

Anwar Hossain Monir - 5

The surprise inclusion in both the Tests, he did not
seize the opportunity with both hands and was totally ineffective and very
pedestrian. He perhaps sealed his image as a ?tour? bowler (for 1st class
matches).

Shahadat Hossain - 4

He had a forgettable debut. His much talked about pace
turned out to be nothing more than gentle medium pace (Ed: do we have any radar
gun outputs here? Anyone saw the 1st match?). He needs to focus more on line and
length and variety than breaking batsmen's toes.

About the author(s): Asif Saleh known as Sraabon in BC has been an armchair cricket player all his life. He never made it to the Nirman team in his school days at St. Joseph's because he missed all the practice sessions while listening to radio commentaries of Test matches all around the world. He has finally found a venue to be the Harsha Bhogle of Bangladesh via BanglaCricket.com. His goals are getting hired as a full time sports reporter by the Daily Star and get paid to see Test cricket around the world.